Ballerina Core Tips

4 Reasons Ballerinas Have Crazy-Strong Cores

Plus, how you can steal their abs tricks—no tutu required.

4 Reasons Ballerinas Have Crazy-Strong CoresPlus, how you can steal their abs tricks—no tutu required.

Rachel Neville/ Courtesy of Mary Helen Bowers

If you've ever seen a ballet performance before, you know that ballerinas are pros at making mind-blowing dance moves look graceful and easy. But make no mistake: Their bodies are working very, very hard to have those steps seem effortless.

The hardest working muscles in ballerinas' bodies are the ones in their cores. Why? Because everything dancers do comes from their centers of balance (a.k.a.—you guessed it—their cores). "When you dance, you engage your abs in every step," says Mary Helen Bowers, a former soloist for the New York City Ballet and founder of Ballet Beautiful. "To turn, leap, and extend your leg, you need a strong base and center of balance. Even in the most basic step, you’re pulling in to keep that beautiful posture."

Here, four ways ballerinas keep their cores strong—and how you can get ballerina built too:

They Work Their Abs First
Since the core supports the entire body, ballet dancers need to keep theirs really strong to prevent injuries, says ballet dancer Ashley Murphy of the Dance Theatre of Harlem. To make sure keeping their cores activated is top of mind, Murphy says she and other ballerinas will do abs workouts like sit-ups, Pilates hundreds, and planks between rehearsals and before performances to "wake up" their core muscles. Bowers says she also likes to start rehearsals and workouts with abs moves to help her remember to pull in throughout the rest of her practice. "Since you've already isolated them, it's easier to remember to pull in when you're doing other moves like pliés," she says.

They Jump a LOT
When ballerinas jump, the first thing they do is breathe in using their diaphragms, which activates their cores. Then, they use their abs and glutes to prep for the jump, perform the jump, and support their bodies when they land so that they can do so softly, says Murphy.

While you might not be doing leaps across a stage, incorporating jumps into your routine with plyometric moves can help you build a strong core (and legs, too). Try one of these 10 plyometric jumps to burn calories and sculpt some serious muscle.

They Take It Slow
Another killer core workout that ballerinas do daily is a floor exercise called adagio. During this exercise, the dancers use slow, sustained movements like lifting one leg and turning. This super slow movement forces their cores to keep readjusting to accommodate their movements, says Murphy. In other words, it's a painfully slow workout (in a good way).

They Practice Balancing
From executing turns to performing arabesques—and doing it all on pointe shoes—ballet dancers are constantly trying to stay upright in tough positions, says Murphy. When balancing, dancers must use their cores to keep themselves from falling. And while ballerinas’ arms might look graceful and light during a performance, they can actually make it harder for a dancer to balance. "Any time you use your arms at the same time as your body, whether they're above your head or out to your sides, it requires extra core strength to hold everything in," says Murphy.